Craft Beer Monday Review: Metropolitan Iron Works Alt

I like this label, it reminds me of Futurama, really cool.

And I like this beer too. It has quite a different taste, maybe it reflects the taste of an Alt like it should. I don't think I really know, because I can't say that I have tasted an alt before.

I tried this one at Sheffield's at the end of the summer on tap and again on Saturday night in the bottle. Had a couple more to make sure, while watching the hockey game. After drinking one in the bottle I poured the last one in a glass because I was getting that funky taste I sometimes get off a bottle. It went away after pouring.

I am finding that an Alt is a German brew (Dusseldorf to be precise) and uses a lager yeast that is top fermented but at lower temperatures than those traditionally top fermented, like ales. This produces a cleaner crisper taste. Historically, this type of beer was created outside of Bavaria, where the Reinheitsgebot was not in effect, so it could be brewed and stored in the summertime. This was thanks to the mountainous climate in the North, unlike Bavaria.

This darker brown beer by Metropolitan has the strong malt flavor I would expect but has a stronger hop presence than I expected and a very dry finish. It has a flavor I have never experienced before. Definitely worthy of repeated tastings.

CBC Review: Another 5, since it is the first of its kind that I have tasted.

Metropolitan is a Chicago brewer that makes mostly lagers and has some that I have enjoyed. It is on my list of breweries to go to in Chicago, and will be reviewed then.

Where to Find Craft Beer-My Local Jewel

When I was in the Jewel Food Store on Lee Street in Des Plaines, I noticed they do a better job stocking craft beer than other retailers around here. This store is not my usual one, but probably should be since I noticed they care a little more about the beer drinkers than the one closer to me. For example, when it was first announced Stella would be available in half quart cans I found them there in 4 and 10 packs before any other place, even Binny's. My local Jewel is a lot closer and adequate, but could really spend less stocking space with the Polish and Mexican beers if you ask me.

This picture is of a shelf labeled "Craft", which is nice. And, as you can see, does a fairly good job with some of the crafts I have enjoyed. It is always good to see Sierra Nevada PA and Torpedo, but also the autumn offering, Tumbler. Plus 12 packs too?

Additionally they have Two Brothers, thank you-have to have them, plus Dundee, Rogue Dead Guy, #9, Shiner, that new Chi-Town Brewery I have started to see lately (which is brewed in Stevens Point, in case you hadn't noticed), 2 Bell's, Red Hook, Sam Adams, etc. So, I think it is a pretty good variety, considering the source. Why there are Michelob products on the craft beer shelf I don't know, except that since Bud is there with Goose Island, Redbridge, Landshark and Shock Top maybe they want to sell some other stuff.

Personally, the fact that three of the beers I would put in my Top Ten Favorites are here on this shelf either says a lot for me (or little, that maybe my tastes suck). Those are SNPA, Domaine Dupage and MH #9.

Plus a few of these are on sale, which I like too. I am always looking for a good deal, in case you hadn't noticed, so I like to see some beers available at other places. I can never find craft beer for under $9 a six-pack unless it is on sale (which is rarely) at Binny's, so that is why I shop at other retailers like Jewel, Walmart and Mariano's, just to see what they have to offer.

More to follow about other stores, I am sure.

Walmart to Stock More Craft Beer

Good news for the consumers, craft beer at reasonable prices-I'm all for that.

Here are some shots of the beer fridge at the local Walmart, and we can see here what they have that may qualify as craft beer. Please ignore the obvious-this is one messy beer fridge, with apparently no design in mind. So I apologize if it doesn't look like your Walmart.

Basically, if I look through the stacks, I see Sierra Nevada, New Belgium (Fat Tire and Snow Day) and Redbridge. We also have Goose Island and Leinenkugel, both of whom have lost their craft designation (if they even ever had one). Since Redbridge is a Budweiser product it doesn't qualify either.

I always thought they had a fair collection of imports that I enjoy-Stella, Newcastle, Bass and Guinness. This store has a heavy amount of Mexican beers and the one closer to my house stocks more Polish beers, so they appeal to the buying public in their stores pretty well, I guess.

There was talk of Stone and Dogfish Head, but maybe Two Brothers here in Chicagoland?

I think this will be a good thing, but not unheard of. While in the Wisconsin Dells on vacation we did some shopping at their Walmart and I found a variety of New Glarus products at a good price too. I think, in their case, maybe it is considered local beer, but craft beer just the same, as far as I am concerned.

The timeline has not been determined, but I look forward to seeing them appear, especially if it is Midwest craft beer, of course. I just hope they consider keeping it regional, or else those craft beers will be just the biggest brew houses we usually see.

Craft Beer Monday Review: Wild Onion Hop Slayer

Hop Slayer is a Double IPA, and it is brewed right here in Lake Barrington.
Fortunately CBC member Steve B encounters the brewpub on the way home, or else I would have never heard of it. Their pub offers food and a few beers on tap. They distribute their beer mostly local and in cans. As with others, after pouring in a pint glass, I could not tell it came out of the can anyway. More on that debate later.

This one poured smoothly and thick with much foam into the glass and it gave off some strong aromas of pine and clove, as I expected, plus a stronger and sweeter smell I wasn't expecting. It is unfiltered and orange and red in color, and the head and lacing remained throughout the initial tasting. The flavor was sharp and bitter in great strength, and its high alcohol content was obvious (t is 8%). I took it slow and sipped it. I think what I noticed was its separation of tastes, not enough blending for me.

It is not the kind of beer I normally drink, so I don't know if I can review it as fair as I should, but I think I had a problem with the stark differences in tastes. I would have preferred a smoother mix.

Like other craft beers maybe the mix changes with new batches, or maybe I need to gain more appreciation for the Imperials, which I don't have as much familiarity with. I think I will start to try more of these higher IBU beers and see if that can help, but so far I have been unaccustomed to their depth and power.

CBC Rating: 3.

Sam Adams Oktoberfest Event We Missed

Sam Adams has been holding a beer stein hoisting contest at various bars this fall, and, looking at the website here, an Indiana man has the current record for 21 minutes.
I don't think I would last that long, not only because I think you have to hold it out and not drink it at all! In fact, I don't think I have ever held a beer for 20 minutes without drinking it, at least not an Oktoberfest.
Maybe next year the Beer Club can attend one of these events and maybe an Oktoberfest. Steve and I attended one last week and it was excellent, and really a lot bigger than I anticipated. More on that later.

Craft Beer Monday Review: Goose Island Harvest Ale

The debate rages concerning whether we should continue referring to Goose Island as a craft beer, and whether to consider it Midwest beer too. It is owned by Busch and Inbev, but for now, I am going to include it in here. The same question was raised by the editors of the The Great Lakes Brewing News, whose editors have decided to take it off their list of brewpub tours for Illinois.

This one was a little different than I expected. For autumns and Oktoberfests I have seen the traditional Marzens or Munich Lagers, and even a Doppelbock from Capital (Autumnal Fire) at a whopping 7.8% ABV. This, instead, is an ESB, a good quality ale but with a strong malt and hop character I didn't expect. It is copper in color and has a healthy amount of carbonation, which allowed for the right amount of head and bubbles.

I have been fond of other offerings from Goose Island, like their winter rye ale, Mild Winter, and some specialty beers like Red Felt and Bourbon County Stout. In fact, most of the time you will find Honkers in my fridge. I am thinking of adding this to my list, maybe even stock up for the winter like I do for other Oktoberfests.

Overall a good tasting beer, and worthy of repeating. CBC Rating: 4.

Oktoberfest Review Time Coming

It's about time for a review of Oktoberfest Beers! Just for fun I think we will review a big handful, and limit ourselves to those with labels that state themselves as Fest, Autumn or Oktoberfest specially. In other words, no pumpkins, non-Oktoberfest German lagers or Weiss Beers. I will try to use as many submitters as I can for this review.

We are going to use the scale (1-6) for this blog we have been using, with some commentary with each one. I will compile all the reviews and post them here.

Also, since I have been finding that batches change over time and bottling, I am reviewing those I will have tasted this season only. Here's the list that I will most likely be rating. If you have more than this lets put them together the best we can or get together and we can share our thoughts.

Spaten
Sam Adams (draft and bottle)
Leinenkugel's
Hacker Pshorr (draft and bottle)
Two Brothers Atom Smasher
JB Oktoberfest (Trader Joe's)
New Glarus Staghorn
Sprecher
Kostritzer
Goose Island Harvest Ale

International Beer Review: Efes Turkish Beer

Efes, Europe's fifth largest brewer, is dominating a portion of the market that is growing incredibly fast-Turkey. Also available in Europe, Efes has a handful of beers available, including the two I sampled, Pilsener and Dark.

Pils or Pilsener, depending on which bottle you have, is considered their flagship and is available in 60 countries (click on title to get to their website).
It is considered a German Pilsener, and has many of those characteristics except, I thought, it was a little lacking in hop presence which is characteristic of the original pilsners. Smooth, yes, refreshing, I suppose, but otherwise not too thrilling there. Pretty much average. CBC Rating: 3

The other one I tried, the Dark, appears to be the second most popular
beer they produce and was one recommended by George, who travelled
to Istanbul and who luggaged them back to me. This one was a little more characteristic of German darks and was more satisfying. There was a stronger malt presence and more alcohol in the body, which you don't recognize in the Pilsener. Makes sense when you see that the Pils has an ABV of 5 and the Dark is 6.2.
CBC Rating: 4.


Beer reviews coming up soon will be a review of some Swedish Beers, luggaged out of Stockholm, all in cans, plus a review of Oktoberfest selections. The latter will be simply a list of votes by three club members. Stay tuned for that entry too.

Craft Beer Monday Review: New Glarus Staghorn Octoberfest

Tasted, repeatedly, in the bottle, from mine and my neighbor's trips over the state line, since NG is exclusive to Wisconsin. All it takes is a zip up to Woodman's every once in a while. Tasted this last year, but only purchased a six pack and when I returned a few weeks later, it was sold out. Apparently this year more was produced or at least made available to stores in Kenosha, or just timing, I suppose.

Brewed to the traditions of the Bavarian brews, Staghorn is heavy on the malts and is higher in alcohol, but, I really think it excels over a few of those German Oktoberfests we have been drinking for a long time. I will have an entry reviewing those fest beers I have tasted soon, in the spirit of the season.

They advertise it as a red, and, in New Glarus tradition, throw a little something extra into it, they give it a little spice. This reminds me of the rye beers, which are red and a little spicy, but I think it works here because sometimes with an excess of malts, beer will tend to sour a little, and while it is a fun little twist at times, I don't prefer it over some other features, like sweetness, for example.

CBC Rating:4. Good and worthy of repeated tastings.

On an upcoming post I will mention my favorite beer stores and I will be sure to detail Woodman's a little more (this link doesn't do much, sorry), but I encourage stocking up on this one because they have loaded them up really well this year with cases, 12 packs and sixes, but it is seasonal, or course.

Craft Beer Monday Review: Two Brothers Atom Smasher

On Tap at Sheffields, this was an easy decision for me since I have always been a fan of the Oktoberfests, and Two Brothers was my first foray into Chicagoland craft beers (thanks Bingo, Steve A).

Uniquely flavored, Atom Smasher is a welcome addition to the Two Brothers lineup since they usually delve into heavily hopped ales and only produce lagers on a seasonal basis, and don't really promote them too much, if you ask me. In fact, I am including the link from Ratebeer, since TB doesn't have it on their website even.

Tasting: Cloudy amber with some orange colors swirling and with a beige head that disappears quickly, this was reflective of the Oktoberfest lagers I have been accustomed to except for a couple flavors I wasn't expecting: citrusy early and a hint of sourness at the finish. I think I will try it again in the bottle to make sure.

CBC Rating: 4.